Chapter 197
The Kaldris 7th Corps, which had guarded the fortress, carried out a humiliating retreat, swallowing their rage.
The Allendia Army didn’t chase the retreating Kaldris soldiers, for they had a duty far more important than that.
“Break it! Break it all!”
The giant swordsman fired red Blade Aura.
Along with explosions, the walls collapsed, and piles of stones crumbled down.
Boom!
Kibie and Effir also helped, releasing Aura and performing Magic Swordsmanship techniques.
It wasn’t enough to break it down in one shot like Ryu Han-bin, but every time they attacked, the ground shook, and the walls cracked.
Boom…
Leon Hart and Artis delivered the final blows.
-Unique Spiritual Art: Bloody Rose!
“Release the world’s fiery abyss! Magma Break!”
The moment the spiritual barrier bloomed like a rose, the cracked wall collapsed like a domino.
Dozens of flames shot through the collapsed walls, causing a chain of explosions.
The Allendia Army didn’t stand by either. They worked together with the rest of the party to destroy the buildings and set them on fire.
It took half a day for Fort Meliben to follow Fort Roian’s footsteps.
“Is this enough?”
Looking at the utterly ruined fortress, Ryu Han-bin smiled pleasantly.
“Let’s go back.”
* * *
Under orders from above, the remaining troops of the Kaldris 3rd Corps were absorbed under the command of the 8th Corps. Dana, the defeated general, also came under Jakel.
After maintaining the line, Drax’s 4th Corps and Jakel’s 8th Corps immediately moved north.
It was their duty to prevent the advance of the Allendia 1st Corps.
“They’re now attacking Fort Meliben.”
“They won’t last long. We need to move as fast as we can.”
They ran nonstop for three days and nights with an atypical march speed.
It was an act that a proper commander should avoid since it damaged the troops’ physical fitness and morale.
Naturally, the soldiers’ complaints abounded.
But they couldn’t help it.
“If Fort Meliben fell, it’s going to be dangerous for us.”
When they managed to get to the fort, they were met by the same sight as Fort Roian.
“Well, uh…….”
“They broke everything and retreated again?”
Jakel frowned deeply.
“I think I understand what they’re after.”
If they planned to break through the invasion of the Kaldris Kingdom, they didn’t have to destroy the forts. If possible, it was safe to take it for themselves and leave it as a bastion behind their back.
“It’s a defensive tactic disguised as an attack.”
Over and over again, they destroyed Kaldris’s forts around the border then returned home before causing further damage.
It would make the supply line too long for the Kaldris Army.
“Naturally, the attack of the other legions on the border of Allendia will be vulnerable.”
Drax found himself voicing out his thoughts.
“That’s new to me. I’ve never learned tactics like that before.”
Jakel replied, “It’s not a standard military operation. It’s usually used in small countries and occasionally in the countryside of Latna.”
Regardless, they had been running all over, and they were left behind again.
As all three commanders were looking at the once-fortified ruins with a melancholic look on their faces, they heard a fluttering sound in the distance.
“Huh?”
“This sound is…”
From the southern sky, a giant monster with a human on its back was flying.
It was a Hippogriff, a flying monster with a horse’s body on the eagle’s head and wings, from the Hippogriff Knights, an air force in the Kaldris Kingdom.
When the Hippogriff landed, a knight quickly jumped and looked for a leader.
“Commander Jakel!”
“What is it this time?”
Passing the documents urgently, he summarized the situation.
“The Allendia 2nd Corps has crossed the southern border! Fort Doria has fallen, and the 6th Corps is now engaged in a war against the invasion based on the Satilan Mountains!”
Fort Doria was also one of the most defensible southern border forts that Kaldris had boasted.
That fort fell?
Sighing, Dana asked, “How? Did a gigantic magic arrow fly in?”
The messenger opened his eyes round.
“… How did you know?”
* * *
The armies of the two kingdoms were camped at the entrance of the Satilan Mountains and on low ridges with low bushes.
They were the Allendia 2nd Corps, led by Lord Felderok, a 230-year-old dwarf knight, and the Kaldris 6th Corps, led by Grastille, a level 89 Aura user.
Each Corps had 3,000 and 3,500 troops, respectively.
There was no significant difference in power, and their average level was similar.
A nip and tuck match could be expected just by looking at the war situation.
But Lord Felderok was confident of victory.
“Charge! Kill them all!”
And Grastille, too, was convinced of defeat.
“Back off! Back off! We need to brace up for impact!”
The Allendia 2nd Corps ran up the ridge fearlessly, swinging their spears and swords vigorously and cutting down everything in front of them.
“For the Goddesses!”
“Be punished by the heavens, Kaldris bastards!”
The Kaldris 6th Corps continued to flee, only focusing on maintaining their position, but they didn’t dare counterattack.
It was because of that monster at the forefront of the 2nd Corps.
“Huh!”
A roar shook the battlefield.
In a red Aura, the gigantic swordsman surged into the air.
At the same time, powerful Blade Auras bombarded the place like artillery shells.
-Crosscut!
Flames raced along the ridges, seemingly splitting the world and causing whirlwinds to rise.
Knights and soldiers screamed.
“Argh!”
“Argh!”
The muscular barbarian’s eyes glared at his opponents as he walked, his red-coated sword in hand.
“If you don’t want to die, retreat!”
The Allendia 2nd Corps raided the completely disorganized enemy lines like predators.
One of the knights shouted with excitement.
“Behold, the Sword King’s might! The War God is protecting us!”
“Sword King!”
“Sword King Felard!”
The Allendia army, with high morale, was scaled through the mountain with haste, and the casualties of the Kaldris Kingdom troops increased as time went by.
Lord Felderok, the commander of the Allendia 2nd Corps, smiled in vain.
“This is an easy war! You’ve been enjoying all the good stuff, haven’t you, 1st Templar Corps?”
The existing Sword King Army and the 1st Templar Corps of the Church of Darkness were called the strongest not because they were at a higher level than other units or because they had high combat abilities and experiences.
It was only because among them were the Sword King Felard, Spiritual Boxer Leon Hart, and other absolute powerhouses.
In other words, if the Sword King’s party moved into the other corps, they could show the same power as the Sword King Army!
“Hahaha!”
Swinging a halberd, Lord Felderok burst into laughter.
“Now we are the Sword King Army!”
* * *
In that battle, Kibie still liked using chariots.
She shouted, riding on a vehicle pulled by two Golem Steeds.
“Keep going!”
No one could stop her from running wild.
She had suffered a lot from Leon Hart.
It even made her think like, ‘Is this how he serves me? He pampers me with good words, but does he actually harbor ill intent towards me?’
Thanks to him, her skills improved dramatically.
She could finally perform all level 120 skills without any problems!
“Taaaaah!”
Through her sharp spear, pitch-black Blade Aura thundered through the battlefield in countless trajectories.
Everything it came across was flung away or destroyed.
Boom!
Most of the retreating knights fell as a result. The soldiers didn’t dare to get close. It wasn’t just that Kibie was too strong.
“Gasp!”
“That Valtara warrior…”
“incarnation of darkness!”
Six denominations declared, throughout Latna, that the black-haired beauty was the incarnation of darkness. The soldiers were well aware of that fact.
Naturally, they couldn’t help but think, ‘Is the spear wielded by that woman the punishment of the Goddess?’
The Latnains believed that the condemned souls were bound to be tormented in hell without a hitch.
“Ugh…”
“Let’s avoid…”
Of course, according to the announcement of the Kaldris Kingdom and the Mado Kingdom, she was a fake incarnation and would be nothing but an impostor that deserved punishment.
But from a soldier’s point of view, they wouldn’t be able to help but wonder.
There was nothing more to be ashamed of despite their counterattack becoming passive.
Six hundred of the Allendia 2nd Corps’s soldiers were led by Kibie, breaking through the Kaldris 6th Corps from their left flank.
Meanwhile, Ryu Han-bin was pushing through the battlefield from the right.
“Taaaaah!”
He flew up into the skies and fired red Blade Auras. After making a path for his allies, he rushed back to the ground.
His prowess was enough to conjure up the old Sword King’s image.
The Sword King Baotolt always ran on his own two legs on the battlefield.
Why would a man who ran faster than a horse need to ride on one?
“He is a real legendary Valtara warrior!”
Admiring the majesty, the Allendia Army followed Han-bin diligently.
Dozens of knights and hundreds of infantries on Golem Steeds advanced, cutting down their enemies.
Crossing the battlefield from the right, the enemy split in half again.
Eventually, the Kaldris 6th Corps was divided into four legions due to the cooperation between Kibie and Ryu Han-bin.
The troops of Leon Hart, Effir, and Artis defeated them one by one in turn.
“Argh!”
“Argh!”
Soon after, only one way was left for the 6th Corps.
“Retreat! Retreat!”
Still, they managed to patch up the defeated soldiers and went on to have a challenging escape.
However, Han-bin’s party had no intention of letting the enemy go. A fierce chase ensued.
Causing massive damage, the 6th Corps managed to retreat to Fort Fieldrocks.
Only then did the Allendia Army stop the offensive and begin maintaining their positions.
Lord Grastille looked bleak, leaning against the wall and breathing hard.
“Sigh, what are we supposed to do now?”
* * *
The Allendia army’s position was a short distance away from Fort Fieldrocks.
Seira was briefing Han-bin’s group gathered at a large makeshift barracks.
“The remaining force of the 6th Corps is now estimated at around 1,500. Even if they combined forces with the thousand troops in Fort Fieldrocks, we have an advantage in terms of power.”
Her expression was quite bright while reporting.
No matter how pessimistically calculated the situation was, they wouldn’t lose.
“Half a day would be enough for us to take over the fort.”
Indeed, the atmosphere at Fort Fieldrocks was abysmal.
It was because they knew what fate the other border bastions had met.
No matter how mighty the gates and how thick the walls were, they were useless in the presence of that monster, the Sword King.
One or two of those insane magic arrows would be enough to blow them away.
It was like a tiger came in and grabbed sorghum and shuddered.
Ryu Han-bin was already smiling, touching his belt.
“Should I launch them?”
Judging from the look on his face, he seemed to have been having quite a bit of fun.
Who wouldn’t have fun shooting missiles from afar?
Leon Hart shook his head.
“I’m sorry to bother you, but no magic this time.”
“Huh? Why?”
“We have to take over the fort right now instead of destroying it. We can’t just keep attacking and retreating.”